Marquess of Titchfield | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament forBletchingley | |
| In office 27 February 1819 – 9 January 1822 | |
| Preceded by | George Tennyson Sir William Curtis |
| Succeeded by | Lord Francis Leveson-Gower Edward Henry Edwardes |
| Member of Parliament forKing's Lynn | |
| In office 9 January 1822 – 5 March 1824 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Martin ffolkes Lord Walpole |
| Succeeded by | John Walpole Marquess of Titchfield |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1796-08-21)21 August 1796 |
| Died | 5 March 1824(1824-03-05) (aged 27) |
| Nationality | British |
| Parent(s) | William Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland Henrietta Scott |
| Alma mater | Christ Church, Oxford |
William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, Marquess of Titchfield (21 August 1796 – 5 March 1824)—styledViscount Woodstock until 1809—was a BritishMember of Parliament (MP) and son of a duke. Born into the nobleBentinck family, his grandfatherWilliam Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, served as bothPrime Minister of Great Britain andPrime Minister of the United Kingdom. Expected to succeed his father as the fifthDuke of Portland, Titchfield died at only 27 years old.
Henry was the first child ofWilliam Cavendish-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland, and his wifeHenrietta (née Scott).[1] His father was the grandson ofWilliam Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, while his mother, Henrietta, was one of three daughters and heiresses born to Scottish GeneralJohn Scott. Upon their marriage, the family name became Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck.
In honour of the birth of his first grandson, the Third Duke of Portland commissioned the Portland Baptismal Font, the only known gold font commissioned for private use in England. Designed bylandscaperHumphrey Repton and crafted byPaul Storr, it stayed in the Bentinck family until 1986, when it was acquired by theBritish Museum.[2]
Henry – referred to by his second name as all the males in the family were named William – was styled as the Marquess of Titchfield in 1809, when his father succeeded to the dukedom.
After private education at home, Titchfield went toChrist Church, Oxford, in 1815. Under headmasterEdmund Goodenough, Titchfield excelled academically and distinguished himself in classical literature. "Few men entered the 'world's great stage' with brighter prospects before them. His character, thus eminent and unsullied at the place of his education, was afterwards destined to display itself with no less brilliancy in the senate of his country, to which an honourable ambition incited him to display the talents, so useful and conspicuous, with which nature and application had endowed him," praised the Rev. Thomas Maurice after his death.[1]
His Oxford classmateGeorge Agar-Ellis, who later became a close friend, wrote in his diary in 1815 that Titchfield was a "stripling marquess" and a "horrid bore ... an empty talkative coxcomb, with theDevonshire bad, affected manner."[3]
His uncleCharles Greville, however, believed that Titchfield's education at home created a disadvantage he was forced to overcome:
The superior indulgences and early habits of authority and power in which he was brought up, without receiving correction from any of those levelling circumstances which are incidental to public schools, threw a shade of selfishness and reserve over his character, which time, the commerce of the world, and a naturally kind disposition had latterly done much to correct.
— Charles Greville, The Greville Memoirs[3]
Another uncle, the Prime MinisterGeorge Canning, later praised his character: "He is really the best of creatures— so right minded and so warmhearted, and so full of native good sense."[3]
In 1819, Titchfield joined theNottinghamshire Yeomanry Cavalry[clarification needed] as a captain. That same year, he was elected to theHouse of Commons as MP forBletchingley, and held that seat until 1822. He was then elected forKing's Lynn in 1822, a seat he held until his death. He is known to have given only one speech in Parliament, on 14 May 1819, when he criticized the Game Laws. He also voted against public lotteries and for inquiry into the abuse of charitable foundations.[3]
He died at the family home in London in March 1824, at age 27; his early death was attributed to abrain abscess. He was interred in the family vault atMarylebone Parish Church in London.[1]
His younger brothers, the eccentricJohn and temperamentalGeorge, also served as MPs. John succeeded him as both the Marquess of Titchfield and the MP for King's Lynn, and eventually became the fifth Duke of Portland.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forBletchingley 1819–1822 With:Sir William Curtis to 1820 Edward Henry Edwardes from 1820 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for King's Lynn 1822–1824 With:Lord Walpole 1822 John Walpole 1822–1824 | Succeeded by |